By Jeremy Fregene
Former Anambra State governor and 2027 presidential hopeful, Peter Obi, has launched a fresh attack on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over the continued captivity of dozens of schoolchildren and teachers abducted in Oyo State, accusing the President of showing a lack of compassion and leadership in the handling of the crisis.
Obi, in a statement posted on his X handle, claimed that more than 50 days after the abduction of the pupils and teachers, President Tinubu had neither publicly reached out to Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde nor demonstrated sufficient concern over the plight of the victims.
Describing the incident as a “Nigerian tragedy,” Obi said he had personally spoken twice with Governor Makinde to express solidarity and had also publicly appealed to the kidnappers to release the victims.
He disclosed that on July 3, he travelled to Ibadan with economist Pat Utomi to meet the governor following the prolonged captivity of the victims.
According to Obi, he was shocked to learn during the meeting that the President had allegedly not called Governor Makinde since the abduction.
“I discovered that, contrary to my assumption that they had been in regular communication over the matter, Governor Seyi Makinde had not received a single call from President Bola Tinubu,” Obi said.
Drawing a comparison with the 2014 Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction, Obi recalled that although former President Goodluck Jonathan was criticised for the delay in contacting the then Borno State governor, the incident attracted sustained attention from the Federal Government and security agencies.
He also alleged that Tinubu was among those who had strongly criticised Jonathan’s handling of the Chibok crisis at the time.
Obi argued that the current administration had witnessed more than 13 school kidnapping incidents and accused the President of failing to demonstrate empathy and urgency.
“The situation reflects a total lack of capacity and compassion, compounded by glaring insensitivity,” he said.
He further claimed that governance had “completely collapsed” under the present administration and urged the President to either resign or decline to seek re-election in 2027, insisting that his comments were “patriotic, not political.”
However, contrary to Obi’s assertion that little effort had been made to rescue the abducted victims, the Nigerian Army has maintained that security agencies are actively pursuing the kidnappers and making measurable progress in the operation.
Speaking during an interactive session with media executives in Port Harcourt as part of activities marking the 2026 Nigerian Army Day Celebration, the Chief of Army Staff, Waidi Shaibu, said troops were making significant progress towards rescuing the 39 pupils and seven teachers abducted from three schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
“Operations are currently ongoing to rescue those children abducted in Oyo State, and we are making tremendous progress,” Shaibu said.
The Army Chief expressed confidence that the ongoing operation would lead to the safe rescue of all the victims and their reunion with their families.
The abduction, which occurred in Oriire Local Government Area, sparked nationwide concern and prompted coordinated operations by the military and other security agencies.
Security authorities have largely refrained from disclosing operational details, maintaining that doing so could jeopardise ongoing efforts to secure the safe release of the victims.
Shaibu reiterated that troops remained committed to bringing the abducted children and teachers home safely while continuing other counter-terrorism and internal security operations across the country.